Inverter fan question

[Nick Hull]

For backup lighting I use a cheap 300 watt inverter w/golf cart
batteries to power some 13 watt CFs. This replaces a 12 vdc flourescent
light that worked poorly and burned out bulbs fast. The 300 watt
inverter is kept running 24/7 to have one light come on automatically
after 10 sec of power failure.

One problem I have had is that certain transients sometimes trip the
inverter off when the power fails, not good for emergency lights. I
bought a second 300 watt inverter to see if it was more immune to
transients, but it has a fan that runs 100% of the time. This presents
2 problems; the fan is noisy and I'm worried it will simply wear out
running 24/7. I could live with the noise but would prefer not to.

My proposed solution is to install a line powered relay to keep the fan
off, so it will come on (and probably stay on) whenever there is a power
failure. I will also mount the inverter vertical with the fan blowing
up and put a chimney on to encourafe thermal circulation. There should
be little heat generated since the only permanent load is a 1/4 watt
neon bulb power indicator. What trouble will I be getting into if I do
this? I don't want to re-invent the wheel.

 

[j.b. miller]

One thing is that the Fan may be 'smart'. It may have a tach in it like the
PC fans. If the fan stops or slows down, your invertor may stop as well to
prevent overheating.
Have a look and see how many wires are on the fan. 2 you're ok, 3 you have a
problem.
hth
jay

 

[someonesimple]

You could always go to a cheap 600w inverter where your load will not pull
the fan on....

 

[Nick Hull]

You could always go to a cheap 600w inverter where your load will not pull
the fan on....

That might be a real good idea, but how can I tell which inverters have
a thermostat operated fan and which just run the fan all the time? That
feature doesn't seem to appear in the descriptions.

 

[someonesimple]

#800 customer service is your friend

That might be a real good idea, but how can I tell which inverters have
a thermostat operated fan and which just run the fan all the time? That
feature doesn't seem to appear in the descriptions.